Blackwater Challenge AZ: 26 Letters
by KaramelKat
Summary: A series of one shots centered around our favorite alpha pair as per the challenge set forth by Ses, KKJ, cucumber07 and Captain Sprockette.
1. A is for Argument

_Do I Stay or Do I Go?_

_A is for Argument_

The door to the Black house slammed open, the force of it filled with a fury that had Billy Black nearly wet himself in his wheelchair in his surprise. His head snapped around to stare at the tall figure that dominated his doorway. He knew who it was, recognized her, even though the sunlight streaming from around her in the doorway covered her face in shadows. A shiver ran down his spine involuntarily, his human self recognizing that a full blown predator that hovered at the door, ready to pounce and strike the first prey that set it off.

She lifted her nose, her nostrils flaring as she scented the air. She obviously didn't find what she was looking for, because she growled out, "_WHERE IS HE?_" Her eyes were ablaze with fire, the tension that filled her frame vibrating with an effort to remain in control.

He briefly considered lying, sending her on a wild goose chase that would try to alleviate whatever anger she possessed at the moment. It crossed his mind for all of two seconds until he realized she'd have his balls for breakfast if he dared do such a thing, no matter his handicap. If it was one thing she didn't possess, it was a pity for those that most considered weaker than others. He admired and hated her for that.

Billy lifted a finger, embarrassed to realize it was shaking slightly as he pointed towards the window. "Garage," he managed to whisper, almost half afraid she would let out a screech and claw him for even daring to speak. His finger was aimed directly at the stand alone, rundown shed that his son Jacob used as his own personal auto shop.

She didn't say a word as she turned and left, the screen door slamming as loud as the front door had bounced off the walls upon her entry. Billy's breath blew out in relief in her absence, his shoulders slumping from the sudden tension, like someone finally releasing a rubber band stretched too tight. Guilt plagued him momentarily at having given up his son so easily, but his self preservation instincts knew that Jacob could handle himself where Leah Clearwater was concerned.

Still, it wasn't very nice setting a rabid wolverine onto a wolf's whereabouts.

**-WPWPWPWPWPWP-**

Jacob Black leaned over the engine of the 1990 Ford F-150 4x4 extended cab truck he was tinkering with. The truck was as old as he was with chipped and faded red and white paint. The engine had a great deal of miles on it, but the motor, tranny and clutch didn't need any work done to it. He had sold his rebuilt VW Rabbit, using the small less-than-impressive fortune he got for his old car to buy his current vehicle.

He loved his little red Rabbit; Jacob missed it terribly. It had been a good little car, but that was the problem. It was a little car. His 6'7" frame could not fit comfortably in the interior without taking out a front seat just to accommodate his long legs. He had to give it up, albeit a bit reluctantly, thanks to his body which could only be comfortable in cars with big, extended cabs.

He had gotten a good price for the 4x4, with some cash left over to do some major improvements to the brake lines and tires which had not been replaced by the previous owner. The chassis was still in great condition and other than normal nicks and fading in the paint and some rust on the back rear panels, the truck was in good condition for the price he got it at.

He was currently in his garage on this not-so-sunny day in La Push. It was rarely sunny in his town. He had already changed the oil, replaced the transmission fluids, and jacked the truck up on two wheels to fix the brake lines and to replace the tires on the back. He was inspecting the wiring on the engine at the moment, making sure all the lines were clean and connected properly. His radio was on filling his ears with the latest Nickelback song and he was singing along with it as he used his grease rag to remove an excess buildup off the ignition wires.

He was entirely unprepared for the sound of something heavy and metal as it struck the upraised hood of his new truck. Jerking backwards away from the hood, Jacob caught a glimpse of his attacker momentarily before he barely had time to duck below the front grill. A Phillips screwdriver flew past him, lodging its sharp four tiered point into the corkboard tool mount on the wall behind him. A socket wrench made a dull whack into the wall before clattering down to the floor near his workboot clad feet.

"What the hell_ Leah?_" Jacob peered cautiously around the hood this time, his dark brown eyes seeking out any further flying objects aimed at his head. She wasn't in the entryway of the garage anymore, nor did she appear to be around the workbench arming her self with his tools as weapons.

He should have paid better attention to where she went. The she-wolf came darting around the other side of his truck, using her stealth and speed to barrel into him full force. Jacob felt himself get shoved backwards under the strength of her attack, her fists pummling him, but he quickly rebounded. He pushed her back, his own strength greater than hers and requiring less effort to fend her off.

She was growling in her human form, her wolf not far from the surface. Jacob could feel her skin quivering beneath his fingertips where he had her arms pinned, not daring to let her go so she could attack him again. Not that it stopped her much - barely anything usually could. Leah was like a full blown hurricane when she was in attack mode. Even now she was struggling to get free, her right leg sweeping out to try and take him down from behind his knees. Jacob swore under his breath and gripped her tighter, drawing her closer in so she had no room to move.

Leah struggled in his grip for several moments before sagging in his hands. It was a ploy to get him to release her, his wolf sensed submission, but Jacob knew better. "I'm not letting go until you explain yourself," he growled out, his own wolf answering the challenge she was putting forth.

"You son of a bitch!" Leah's wrists twisted in his grip and she got in one good jab to his chest from where their hands were pinned between their bodies. "When were you going to tell us Jacob? When! Huh?"

_Shit! _He greeted her questions with silence, cursing himself internally. He knew why Leah Clearwater was here now and she had every right to be angry with him. His hold on her wrists slackened for one second and she jerked them free only to smack him hard across the face before pedaling backwards away from him.

Jacob's cheek burned where she hit. She was probably the only woman in existence that wasn't the undead, who could physically hurt him. He lifted a hand to his jaw, wincing as he touched the area, his voice gruff as he commented, "Embry told you."

"What? You didn't think he would say something?" Leah's voice was loud as it bounced off the walls of the garage and around him. "He's just as upset as we are!"

Jacob grimaced. Just the night before he'd been hanging out with Embry, the two best friends tucking a few beers away. Actually more than a few as their metabolism burned off the drink pretty quick. He vaguely recalled feeling very mellow at one point and sharing with Embry his plans to leave La Push within the next week. With all the pressure from his father to take over as chief of the tribe amongst other things, Jacob wanted to get away. He had to get the truck fixed up first and then he was going to hit the open road, get away from La Push and all the responsbilities there. It may be temporary, but then again maybe permanently.

He tried to remember, had he revealed all that to Embry by accident?

"You can't leave your pack Jacob!" Leah's voice cut through his head, a wealth of fury laying in her words. "You can't abandon us like that!"

Jacob stalked forward, forcing Leah to retreat a bit as he went over to pick up the psuedo-weapons she had thrown at him. Bending over, he gripped the socket wrench in his hands and he straightened up. Looking directly into her eyes he reminded, "I made no promise to stay here Leah. You know that. We talked about this."

It had been a lifetime ago, or months anyways. It had been right around the time his one true love Bella Swan-Cullen had died in childbirth and then been reborn again into a vampire by her husband Edward. Jacob had died that night as well, knowing she'd never be the same clumsy, sweet, simple girl who had graced his garage those cold winter months the prior year. His fist curled around his socket wrench at the thought.

"Oh yeah? Well you promised never to send us back to Sam's pack either. What about that Jacob?" Leah crossed her arms in front of her and said, "What do you think is going to happen when you leave?"

"You don't have to be part of Sam's pack," he retorted, moving back to the workbench to put his socket wrench back. Getting the screwdriver out of the cork was harder. She had thrown it hard and it was wedged in tight. "Why don't you start your own pack Leah?"

"That's not how it works Jacob and you know it," Leah followed his movements with her eyes narrowed. "You're the Alpha. It's your pack. We're your responsiblity and you can't leave m-us!"

"Like hell I can't!" Jake turned to snarl at Leah, her frown deepening at his proclamation. "You think I want to stick around here and be Chief of the tribe? Do you think I'd know what I was doing? And would you want to be here to watch all the happy little imprints and wolves marry? Paul's already proposed to Rachel! Seth practically lives at the Cullens with Renesmee, Edward and Bella!"

"Oh good grief," Leah threw her hands up in the air in frustration, "Of course. You would bring her into it. That's what you're running from. It's always about Bella isn't it?"

"That's only part of it," he said to her harshly as he finally pried the screwdriver out of the wall. He reached out to shut the hood of his truck checking it for damage from that first object she had thrown. "And frankly I don't see where this is any of your business Leah."

"As your Beta, you're always my business," Leah smarted back, leaning back against the hood. "And as Beta I have to say, _you suck_, if you think you're going to leave us like this." Her lips pursed together in a firm line for a moment and then she said, "Bella aside, you do have a responsiblity to the tribe Jake." Her voice trailed off a moment and he realized that was the first time she'd ever used the shorter version of his name. "You may not want to be chief, but you were born to it."

"What do you know?" He stormed around the side of the truck, grabbing the tire iron off his bench and attacking the driver side back wheel. He began to remove each of the lugnuts separately. "You never had your future laid out for you in a nice little package detailing every little thing you're going to do for the rest of your life as Chief." He grunted between words as he worked the tire off.

"I know what it's like to have that future Jake," Leah's voice hovered as she stood behind him. "And I know what it's like to see that future disappear, to have no future." She stomped her foot and then said, "I'd rather have that neat little package."

"Then that's where we differ Leah," Jake set the tire aside and stood up. He was sweating a bit and so he lifted the hem of his dirty workshirt to mop it off his forehead. Lowering it back down, he spotted the oddest look on his Beta's face. "What?" he asked her.

Leah jerked, shaking her head. "What?" Her eyes darted swiftly from his face, downward and back up again looking confused.

"What?" Jake prompted, half amused by the bewildered look on her face. A hint of red was creeping up her cheeks, something that was incredibly rare to see on her face. "Are you blushing Leah?"

**-WPWPWPWPWPWPWP-**

"_NO!_" Leah retorted hotly even though she could feel the heat in her cheeks getting worse from a mixture of embarrassment and anger. She was embarrassed because she'd been caught staring when Jacob lifted his shirt. She was angry because he called her out on it so bluntly.

What the hell was the matter with her? She saw him all the time half naked. Not just him either, but all the boys on the reservation; there was no modesty when it came to phasing. She'd seen his six..no make that eight pack abs all the time before. Why then, did the simple act of him lifting his shirt to mop the sweat off his forehead, cause her to stare like a star-struck teenager?

And why, when she should have been repulsed by the sheen of persperation all over his body, did she find herself wanting to grab a towel off the bench and help him wipe it off? Something was clearly wrong with her. She was angry at him! He was leaving her!

_Us! He's leaving us!_ She forced herself to remember Embry, Quil and Seth, her packmates. She'd run out the door after Embry had dropped the bomb on them. Quil and Embry had come over to play video games with Seth in one of those rare moments he could be torn away from his imprint Renesmee. She had been off hunting with her leech parents, so Seth came home, bringing dragging his friends with to raid the fridge and shoot the breeze.

And now here she was yelling at her Alpha because he was making a huge mistake. Gigantic. She had to put a stop to it. He belonged on the reservation, just like they all did.

"You're trying to make me forget I'm pissed at you for leaving Jake," she turned the conversation back to him. He moved around the other side of the truck to work on the other tire and she stalked after him. "It won't work. If I have to come here and disable your truck to stop you from leaving, I will."

As he worked at removing the other tire, Leah's dark eyes drifted appreciatively over the brawny muscles of his back. The thought crept into her mind that it was a shame he wasted all his devotion to the vampire-lover-turned-leech Bella. That girl had screwed him over and if it weren't for the fact Bella would be Seth's mother-in-law someday (not to mention their mother hanging out too much with Bella's father) then Leah would be sorely tempted to go tear Bella a new hole again for the way she treated Jacob. Unfortunately the undead girl was going to be family - one way or another - and Leah cringed at the greek tragedy of it all.

"What do you care?" Jacob grunted as he removed the other tire. He began disabling the brake discs and pads from the rotors. "You want out just as much as I do Leah." He paused to turn his head and look up at her from his kneeling position on the floor.

Yes, at one time she had wanted out. She wanted to be away from La Push, to leave her life behind and forget she had ever turned into a werewolf. She had resented everything the wolf represented: her lack of femininity, her inability to control her rage around her friends and the loss of her future was the worst of it all. Leah hated all of it, winding herself up into a ball of misery until it had exploded.

And then came the acceptance. She couldn't change being a werewolf and so she had decided to embrace it. Whatever the future might bring - death at a vampire's hand or dying after three generations of living like Taha Aki, Leah was going to roll with the punches. She lived in the moment, not daring to hope for a future anymore or think about imprinting as she once might have liked.

But now in this moment, she found herself unable to think of her future without her Alpha there. She was Beta. She was supposed to be by his side always, looking out for him. "I wanted out," she agreed, sliding down until she was balanced on the balls of her feet, elbows braced on her knees as she met his dark brown gaze. "But not anymore. Our future is here Jake. Yours and mine. We can't fight it. We never could."

She almost blushed again hearing her own words which sounded too intimate to describe their current relationship. They'd been childhood associated, packmates, enemies, frenemies, friends and now Alpha/Beta in the years they'd known each other. She cleared her throat, trying to rid herself of the sappiness she seemed to be inflicted with as she said, "Stay here Jake. Stay with us."

"And if I did?" Jacob asked in his deep baritone. "What should I do it for?" He turned to face her, setting the tire iron down between them. His eyes bore into hers, the air suddenly filled with an uneasy tension. Leah felt like her skin was charged with electricity from his nearness.

She didn't know how to answer his question. There was so much that begged him to stay in La Push - his father, the tribe, the pack, his sister, new wolves, outside threats - everything that should keep him here, but she could think of only one reason that got spoken out loud.

"Because I'm asking you to," she whispered right before giving in to the temptation she'd been ignoring the entire time. She leaned forward, hooking her hand around his neck and smashed her lips onto his. She felt his shock at her momentum and used it to her advantage pressing the kiss further until he opened up under her assault.

Their tongues danced together, heat plummeting through her core and begging Leah to give in to it. Somehow his hand ended up tangled into the short locks of her hair and when things would have gone further, Leah backed off, breaking away from his lips even as everything in her screamed at her to jump back in.

She had to be sure he knew what she was asking, even as he looked confused by what just happened. Leah reached up to untangle his fingers from her hair as she spoke. "I'm asking you to stay Jake. Here. With me."

As the confusion cleared up, a new expression came across his rugged features. From the look in his eyes, she could tell he was torn by his need to go and her request. Now that he knew what he could stay for, it was up to him to decide. Slowly she stood to her feet, dropping his hand back down to his knees. "Think about Jake. Let me know what you decide."

She turned, walking out of the garage before she made a further fool of herself by crying or something equally stupid. It was his choice now to stay or go. Or at least, that's what she'd let him think. Leah palmed the distributor cap of the truck into the pocket of her jeans.

**-WPWPWPWPWPWP-**

**Kat's Note: So I decided to sharpen up my writing skills by accepting the fun challenge set forth by sentinel10 (Ses), Kei Kat Jones (Kat) and cucumber07. I think Captain Sprockette is also participating. Feel the Blackwater love ladies A-Z. Was anyone else as disappointed as I was when they cut the wolfpack/imprint scenes from Breaking Dawn pt 1 and forgot to include the deleted/extended scenes in the special features? Ah well, at least I get to see the wolf pack in my better dreams.**


	2. Update on where to find Blackwater AZ

Dear Readers,

I am writing this to tell you of a decision I have made in regards to my stories under the Twilight Saga: The Woman, The Wolf, The Myth and the Blackwater A-Z Challenge. The new non MA standards here at have caused a mass exodus of some of my favorite authors who have in turn joined a group of Twilight Wolf Pack fan girls (and boys) over at Jacob Black N Pack website.

I have joined this website which encourages authors to write no matter what the rating of their stories is. Because Blackwater A-Z was intended for a mixture of K+ through MA fiction, I will be moving the story to that website and only updating it there. I have taken down Chapter 2 – B is for Ball here on because it did not comply with the non MA standards set. You can find Chapter 1 and 2 both posted at JBNP.

I will continue posting The Woman, The Wolf, The Myth on although if any MA content becomes available in that story, it will only be posted at Jacob Black n Pack. I encourage you to google the website and join me there. There are a multitude of wolf pack centered Twilight fanfics that you cannot find here on . I have even begun a new story there with a pairing of Bella/Embry if you would be interested in reading it.

To all the loyal Twilight fanfictioners out there who have reviewed and read my stories I say thank you. Thank you for every word of encouragement and support you have given to my writings.

I hope to see you over at JBNP!

Karamelkat


	3. C is for Camp

_You're in the Werewolf Army Now_

"Alright you bootlicking butt warmers! Attention! General Uley on deck!" Jared shouted, his voice ringing out through the forest trees.

"Jared you dork, we're in the woods, not on a boat," Quil snickered as he clamored to his feet with the rest of the wolves

"Silence Soldier Ateara!" Jared commanded, taking his role of platoon sergeant way too seriously. "Drop and give me thirty push-ups!" His voice carried the command of a Beta behind it.

Leah rolled her eyes as she stood to her feet. Next to her Embry grumbled, "Who farted this idea out of their ass?"

Leah and Jacob both had to press their lips together to save themselves from sniggering out loud and subjecting themselves to the same fate as poor Quil who was now face down to the dirt, lifting his stocky frame in a punishment that he couldn't refuse to do.

It had been Sam's idea that the pack should spend two weeks in "Werewolf Bootcamp" re-learning some of the most basic battle skills. After the newborn army had come near Forks and La Push, they had gotten a true taste of what it meant to take on such numerous enemies at once. Although they had won the fight, it had been the alliance with their enemies the Cullens that had saved the day, not just the pack's own brute force. It had grated on nearly everyone's pride to accept help from the enemy (_vegetarian or not)_ and they couldn't rely on the Cullens like that. Sam was determined the wolves would be prepared for war should it ever happen again.

The attitudes of the wolves had been varied about the boot camp idea. The younger boys were having a field day, treating this like one of their war video games, plotting survival techniques and killing tactics with each other. Collin, Brady and her own brother Seth were in Survivor seventh heaven, head-over-heels ready to participate fully in whatever Sam planned. Collin had brought some black shoe polish, the underage trio decorating their face in 'war paint' as they called it. With their half-moon black paint under each eye, they looked more like out-of-place linebackers in Leah's opinion.

Of the older wolves only Jared was taking his responsibility seriously, using his status as Beta of the pack to unofficially declare himself the "Platoon Leader". Embry, Quil and Jacob had been making fun of him non-stop since they came out into the woods. Having them do push-ups was Jared's idea of punishment. Paul had laughed his ass off at Quil whose sarcastic mouth was perpetually getting him in trouble.

Leah tried to pretend indifference to what was going on, but it wasn't easy knowing she'd be stuck in the woods for two weeks straight with the boy's club. And it didn't help that she was going to be in close proximity with Sam for that same period of time. This was going to be hell.  
>The first morning's activities had consisted of physical training - running, jumping jacks, two and one-armed pushups, climbing and crawling over and under obstacles on the forest floor. Leah was proud of the fact she ran the fastest, even in human form, but the boys had the advantage on the climbing skills with their strength.<p>

They had eaten lunch; Emily had volunteered to bring fresh food out to them daily. There'd been enough sandwiches and chips to feed a small army which is what it would take to fill all the werewolf bellies present. Sam had warned them not to get too attached to Emily's deliveries as he planned on making them catch their own food on some of those days. Leah's stomach rebelled at the thought. She hated eating raw.

She stood to attention with the rest of the guys as they waited for Quil to finish his push-ups and hop back to his feet. Once all the wolves were in line from tallest to shortest (what was this the Von Trapp family?) putting Leah between Seth and Collin, Sam walked down the line inspecting them carefully. Jared followed behind Sam, pausing only once to give Quil the evil eye.

"This afternoon we're going to have one on one fights. Each wolf will attempt to take down their opponent using their own fighting skills. I want to see what you lot need to improve upon," Sam informed them with a stoic face. "Once we know what you need to work on, that will make tomorrow's fights even more important. You will be told what to work on and be expected to improve on it."

The wolves glanced at each other, all wondering who they were going to be paired up with. Leah didn't look at any of them. She knew who she'd be paired up with. Collin, Brady or Seth - the younger wolves - just because Sam would say it'd make the fight fair. Already she could feel the burning in her chest, the anger that came from being considered weaker by her ex-boyfriend just because of her gender.

"Jacob. Paul. You two first!" Sam ordered.

Jacob and Paul stepped forward, Paul cracking his knuckles and looking excited by the prospect of the fight. Their rivalry went a long way back before they were both werewolves when Paul had stolen Jacob's juice box on the playground at five years old. All the werewolves had relived that memory, burned in Jake's brain forever, as the reason why Paul should never be trusted around Jake's food or anything else..

Their wrestling started off as human, but quickly progressed to the two boys phasing, snapping, snarling and biting at each other. The other members of the pack crowded around in a loose semi-circle careful not to get their skin caught between the canine teeth. When Sam finally had seen enough, he called for an end to the fight. Paul had his ass handed to him on a platter as usual and Jacob was smirking when the two came back from phasing out of sight.

Sam and Jared who had been watching the fight together, conferred for a few minutes in quiet words before giving Paul the advice to work on his defense. "Don't think I didn't see that Cullen monkey save you from the newborn in battle. You should never have let that vampire get its arms around you in the first place," Sam instructed Paul, the younger boy's face thunderous over the reminder of his near disaster.

Jacob was told he needed to work on teamwork, coordinating with other wolves. He didn't look very happy by the suggestion. It was an underlying hint that Jacob was the true Alpha and leader of the pack. Eventually he'd need those skills and techniques to direct the pack in a battle situation.

Quil and Jared were paired up next, followed by Collin and Brady. Leah glanced at Seth, knowing he would be her opponent in the upcoming challenge. He smiled at her and whispered, "Don't worry sis' I won't take it easy on you." Leah rolled her eyes at him but smiled. Seth understood how she felt and would give it his all. She would try to hold back. She didn't like the thought of harming her brother..

She was expecting to be paired with him so it came as a bit of a shock to her when Sam called out Seth and Embry's names together. She had figured Embry to be paired up with Sam. Embry was only two inches shorter than Sam in height although his lean body was more like Seth's than Sam's bulky frame. Was Leah getting paired up with Sam? She wouldn't have figured him to put himself into the position of wrestling around with his ex-girlfriend. Could that be any more awkward?

And yet, as she thought about trying to take down the much larger alpha, Leah found herself excited about the challenge. If she managed to get in even a few licks, she could prove that she belonged in the pack with everyone, that she brought some worth to it. The boys club always liked to point out that she wasn't one of them, that she was somehow weaker, but she'd be damned if she wouldn't show them different. Her fists clenched in anticipation and she bounced on the balls of her feet, readying herself to go as soon as Seth and Embry finished.

The sun was dipping lower as the mid-afternoon gave way to the tepid temperatures of the late, evening. After Embry and Seth's fight, Sam consulted with the wolves on what to improve for the next fight, giving instructions to each on what to work on. He also gave them reminders of the weaknesses of vampires that they had learned during their training with the Cullens.

"So Jared, Embry, you two will take patrol tonight until midnight. Everyone has a rotation this week. No exceptions," Sam told them all. "We're done for the day."

Leah blinked. She was pretty sure the confusion she felt at the dismissal was written all over her face. Seth who had been wiping the sweat from his brow with his shirt tail, paused in action to look over at his sister, also sensing something was clearly out of order with Sam's final words.

Sam had already turned and walked away, speaking to Jared and Embry about the patrol route as they went with him. Jacob and Quil were glancing back and forth between him and Leah with a questioning look in their dark eyes. Paul had an amused smirk on his face as he watched Leah's reaction, her expression going from shocked, to upset and angry within a few minutes.

Leah felt the fury build up within her chest. Clearly she'd been ostracized by Sam, being the only werewolf to not participate in the afternoon's activities besides himself. There was only one reason he would have done that and it infuriated her so much, she was shaking with rage as she stepped forward to give Sam a piece of her mind.

"What the fuck Sam?"

Leah had opened her mouth to speak but promptly snapped it shut when the words left Jacob's mouth instead. Sam looked up at Jacob with a frown on his face as Jacob stepped forward away from the line. "You got a problem Jake?" His voice was laced with challenge for the one questioning his authority.

"What the hell is going on?" Jacob gestured at Leah. "Why'd you ignore her?"

Leah turned her glare on Jacob, pinning him with her icy intensity. How dare he speak on her behalf?! It was bad enough he'd interfered with her fight with the newborn but now he was interfering again with Sam this time. She sucked in a breath, a growl threatening to erupt from her chest as the anger began to shake her. Seth tried to lay calming hand on her shoulder but she threw it off.

Sam lifted an eyebrow at Jacob, folding his arms over his chest. He turned in a face-off standing just an inch shy of Jacob, both men equally brawny. If Leah wasn't so pissed at both of them right now she might be tempted to ogle their-..nope..she's just pissed at them.

"Not that it's any of your business Jake, but I already know what Leah's weaknesses are," Sam told him without even glancing at Leah. "We're done for the day."

Mother-suckin-son-of-a

Leah didn't get to complete her thought as she exploded out of her skin, tearing through her clothes into her fur pelt. Her hackles were raised. She knew exactly how Sam viewed her weaknesses, just because she was a girl. Jacob looked ready to argue with Sam, Paul was laughing, Seth was yelling behind her and Leah didn't listen to him as she charged at Paul, since he was angering her the most at the moment.

She rushed past Paul and knocking him down to the ground with an outraged, "HEY!" followed by a clearly disgusted, "Bitch!"

The wolf didn't care about him. The wolf didn't care about much which is why Leah let her take control for a few minutes while she sorted herself out. She ran hard and fast away from the pack, seeking the solitude of the forest. It was there in the darkening shadows of the trees that the rancor clouding her mind was whispering all the things she knew her packmates felt towards her.

Weak. Inferior. Menial. Useless. Good for nothing. Girl.

Leah hated the labels slapped down upon her just because of her gender. During the newborn battle she had faced down that stray vampire in an attempt to prove her own strength within the pack, only to have Jacob_ "I'm a hero"_ Black intercede, wounding himself in the process. She knew they all blamed her for his injuries. If Leah wasn't weaker than the rest of them, Jake wouldn't have gotten hurt.

Her paws barely touched the ground as she flew forward, chased by her own failures and personal demons of guilt. She ran for a long time, the sun below the horizon by the time she slowed and stopped. Leah's run had taken her far south of the boot camp and she paced around a tree, lost in her own thoughts.

The boys resented her presence in their all male club; she knew that. Ever since she had phased three months prior, they had to change some of their protocols to prevent offending her "delicate sensibilities" - like hiding behind bushes to phase and keeping their perverted thoughts about her body in check. Some of the boys didn't complain but others like Paul had grumbled to no end about the limitations put on themselves by a girl's membership in their club. He had no qualms about letting Leah know that it was her fault the pack was no longer the same.

As if she had some desire to be a werewolf girl. Paul was a fucking moron as far as Leah was concerned, and she didn't pay much attention to him. It was Sam's thoughts that hurt Leah the worst. It was Sam who didn't want her to be a werewolf, didn't want her in his head during their patrols and feeling her wounded emotions every time he thought of her cousin - _HIS_ Emily. More than once Leah caught the stray thought that his life would be better off without his ex-girlfriend in his pack.

Leah continued to pace, swiping at a young spruce, her claws raking the bark in her frustration. She wanted to show them she was not worthless, that she had a purpose in the pack. If her entire life was going to change because of her shape shifting, she wanted to make it a worthwhile effort. She was tired of being the genetic freak. She was going to show them.

Dimly, Leah became aware of the sound of paws thudding on the ground. She felt her fur bristle as she lifted her nose to scent the air. She was upwind of whatever was approaching her and no scent came her way. Not knowing if she was about to face an angry grizzly bear defending its territory, her lips pulled back from her teeth as she snarled a warning out to whatever animal decided to charge her.

_Ease up Leah. It's just me!_

She heard his thoughts the moment the russet wolf burst through the trees surrounding her. Leah's growls increased instead of desisting, the warning turning into threats as she let her fury over Jacob's meddling take over.

_What the hell do you want Jake?_

The younger wolf stopped in front of her, his posture erect and proud, declaring his status as an Alpha wolf. She maintained her own defensive posture, head lowered, ears flattened and teeth bared as he stood near. Why the hell did he follow her?

_I've been following you for a while now. _Jacob responded to her thoughts. _You were so caught up in your own mental drama you didn't notice me._

_Nobody asked you to come here Jake! Just go away!_

Leah punctuated her demand with a snarl, the wolf in her baring her sharp canines and flicking her tongue to warn Jake away. She was also incensed by his description of her thoughts, treating them like a soap opera for his own personal amusement.

_Chill Leah! I actually came out here to say I'm sorry to you._

Leah's posture changed slightly as she stopped growling, her ears perking forward. She lifted her head and flicked an ear. _Oh?_

_Yeah. After you left Seth chewed me out for standing up for you._

Leah felt a rush of affection for Seth. He always understood her, even when the others did not. He stood up for her, and she'd go to the ends of the earth for him in return. The fact he cussed out his idol Jacob Black made it even better.

_I didn't need you defending me Jacob. I can handle Sam all by myself!_

_Yeah I know. Seth told me as much. I'm sorry._

When Leah didn't say anything else Jake continued. _But Sam shouldn't have done what he did. He acted like an arrogant asshole!_

_When doesn't General Uley act like an asshole?_

The russet wolf snorted and Leah could hear the echo of Jake's laughter in her head. She was mentally smirking herself.

Jacob stopped chuckling. _But it still wasn't fair to you Leah. You should be trained just like the rest of us, no matter that you're a girl. You're one of us and should be treated the same._

Leah let out a snort of agreement. _Thanks Jake. _It was nice to know someone besides Seth cared that she was part of the pack.

_So..._ Jacob's mind voice was cajoling as he spoke. _What do you say we help each other?_

_What?_

_You need someone to train with since Sam is excluding you. I need to learn to work with others better and lead them. How about I start with you?_

_How about..Bite me?!  
><em>  
><em>Seriously Leah! I think we can help each other.<em>

Leah stared at Jake, searching his thoughts for his ulterior motive. She could sense his wanting to help her, and Sam's orders to collaborate with the pack were also on his brain. His intentions were honest, she could tell that much and she surprised herself by agreeing.

_Fine. Let's start. Tonight. Don't hold back Jacob._

_I wouldn't dream of it Leah._ He gave her a wolfish grin.

For the remaining time at boot camp, Jacob and Leah trained together in private. Every evening after the pack had broken up for the night, except for their patrol duty schedules, they'd meet and go over what they had learned that day. Leah quickly learned that her speed and size could help her escape tight situations, but she had to make up for her lack of mass with more precise attacks designed to incapacitate in one single bite.

Jacob in turn, learned to link his thoughts and intentions with Leah as his pack mate through their training. One particular night, when Emily had been absent in delivering food - forcing the pack to hunt for food on their own, the two of them hunted together as a dual unit to bring down a meal. Leah tried to hide her disgust over eating on the go as a wolf and Jacob in turn helped her keep the meal down by showing her the best ways to let her wolf take over with their natural survival instincts.

Later, after their meal, Jacob managed to surprise her. They had forgone her training, focusing instead on hunting their meal and working together. They had phased after eating, resting with their backs against the trees of the forest, full and sated from the deer they had caught, when he shared his thoughts with her.

"Tomorrow I think you should show Sam what you've been learning," Jacob said to her.

Leah's astonishment could not have been more obvious. Jake must have seen it because he assured, "I think you're ready Leah. You've always been ready."

She drew her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them protectively. "It's not like it will change anything Jake." Leah was unable to keep a sigh of frustration from escaping her lips. "You and Seth are the only ones who treat me like a pack member."

"Oh ye of little faith in her pack mates," Jake teased. "Leah, I did not spend the last two weeks helping you improve your skills just to let them go to waste."

"Why did you help me?" Leah interjected. She stared at Jacob, wishing momentarily they were phased so that she could read his thoughts.

"You know why," Jake shrugged indifferently.

"Yeah because I'm a girl," Leah snorted, her disgust at his answer obvious. "Thanks Jake, I thought we had gotten past that." She hopped to her feet, ready to leave him.

"We are past that Leah," Jake stood up abruptly, thrusting himself into her path, forcing her to stop. When she glared up at him balefully he asked, "You don't see it do you?"

"See what?"

"How you scare the shit out of all of us."

"Me?" Leah's shock could not have been more obvious.

Jake chuckled and nodded. "You're the scariest wolf out of all of us. You have a fierce determination that most of the others don't have. Hell, I'm surprised Sam never made you Beta over Jared. You'd be good for the job. You're focused and driven. You know what you want and you know how to get what it is you want from your pack mates." He reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder. "If I was Alpha, I'd pick you to be Beta based on that."

Leah felt herself warming and blushing under his praise. Her voice was a bit softer as she said, "Thanks for the vote of confidence Jake." She gave him a slight smile.

"You earned it."

"You'd be a good Alpha you know," Leah continued. "I'd support you over Sam any day and not just because he's a douchebag General."

Jake laughed for a moment before removing his hand from her shoulder. "So tomorrow you want to show Sam up?"

Leah's eyes lit up with excitement. "You bet!"

The last day of bootcamp dawned with the usual physical training exercises. After working the wolves up to a sweat, Sam called for them to meet in a circle once more.

"Jake pair up with Embry."

Leah glanced between the two. Embry was staring at his friend but Jake's eyes were on her. He inclined his head once.

That was the signal. Leah took a breath and then stepped forward.

"I challenge you, Sam, to combat."

The defiant tone in her voice halted Embry from moving into the middle of the circle from his position. All eyes swiftly turned towards Leah, including Sam's. His brows were drawn together, questioning her remonstration when she had never spoken up in objection before. She met his gaze and kept it, cool and determined to provoke the current Alpha silently.

"Leah get back in line," Sam ordered although the double timbre sound of the Alpha command did not dominate his deep voice.

"No," Leah clenched her fist and jaw, standing her ground. "You've ignored me for two weeks. You will not ignore me now Sam Uley. It is my turn."

"I won't say it again. Stand down Leah."

"No!"

Leah phased on the spot, something else she'd been picking up from her training with Jacob. Her clothes were shredded in the process, but she had extra in her bags and she was in the middle of proving a point. She snarled, charging at Sam who phased just as quick as she did.

Leah launched herself at Sam, their forelegs locking on the other's shoulder in a wolf grapple. She turned her head, immediately seeking to clamp his throat into a hold. He turned his head at the last second and she clamped down on his muzzle instead. The sleek, black wolf dropped his legs, shaking his head to throw her off.

Leah followed, her grip on Sam slipping for a second as he freed himself from her. She wasted no time, pouncing again as he did, their wrestling forms becoming a blur to their packmates that surrounded them. Their snarls and growls filled the forest, the pack giving them a wide berth as they fought, sometimes rolling into trees, the smaller ones breaking under the force of their fight.

_Leah stop this right now!_ Sam yelled in her head as he bit her shoulder.

_I'll stop when you admit I'm part of this pack too! _The lighter gray wolf snarled as she let go, gaining a small amount of space before turning and charging Sam, headbutting him to knock him off his feet. _I'm just as good as any of the other wolves at fighting!_ She punctuated her statement with a well deserved bite on his throat, once again going for the jugular.

She could feel Sam's shock radiating through him at her words. She took advantage of his momentary stun to knock him over, trying to pin him down. He frantically regained his momentum by kicking his back claws and shoving her back away from him. Sam rolled to his feet, his fur bristling as he stood to his full height, tail and ears extended in full dominant alpha mode.

_You will stop fighting right now Leah Clearwater!_

There was no mistaking the Alpha timbre in Sam's command. Leah could feel her body lock in place, no longer hers to control. Her ears folded back, her head lowered and she glared at Sam. She may not be able to move, but she could let him know how pissed she was in glares to him.

_Afraid to fight me Sam? _She could taunt him as well with her thoughts. _Embarrassed to think you'd be beat by a girl?_

_Is that what you think?_ Sam's ears laid low to his head and he growled in response to her thoughts that that was exactly what she was thinking. _Leah this has never been about whether you could fight or not._

It was Leah's turn to be shocked as Sam's words washed over her. She crouched down, regarding him warily. _Why didn't you pair me up with anyone else?_

_Because I already know your weakness._ Sam prowled around her while the other pack members looked on in human form, unaware of the conversation passing between the wolves. _You are a great fighter Leah, but you are impatient and decline help even when you very obviously need it. You put yourself in danger with that newborn by not asking your pack for help when you needed it most._

_I told you I could handle that newborn all by myself! _Leah emphasized her words with a snarl.

_You like to think you are invincible Leah but you are not._  
><em>You think I'm weak?<em>

_No! But none of us is Superman. We all have our weaknesses, even me Leah. You are not weak - impatient, angry and overconfident, yes - but I would never label you as weak._

Leah let her confusion shift to the surface. Every day for two weeks straight she had trained along side of the other wolves, physically tasking herself in the same manner they did. Every day for two weeks, Sam had pitted one wolf against the other, excluding her from the one on one sessions. If he did not see her as weak, why would he not let her fight in the same manner?

_Because I was seeing how far you'd let it go before you lost your temper, testing your patience, your weakness. _Leah could feel it clearly from Sam's thoughts as he watched her that first day. She thought he was unaware of her reaction to his dismissal but he had been tense when he turned his back on her. Sam had been anticipating a harsh response from her, ready to point out this weakness so that she could work on it from day one. He had been shocked when it was Jacob who had spoken up in defiance instead of Leah.

_You ran off that day instead of learning of your weakness as I had intended you to find out. So the next day I did it again. And the next. And yet you continued to stay silent. I had thought that maybe you recognized your own weakness and were working on it._

Leah was unable to stop the memories of her training with Jake coming to the forefront of her thoughts. Sam couldn't miss the montage of extra hours Jacob had spent training with her, building up her stamina and hunting skills until she was ready to confront Sam.

_He took my advice. Good. I'm glad to see that he has worked on what needed to be improved. _Sam glanced at Jacob and then back to Leah. He watched her for a few more seconds before removing the Alpha order from her. The heavy, oppressive magic that weighed down her shoulders lifted away and Leah was able to finally stand on her own two feet. _I think you both have learned something._

Sam phased back to human, pulling his shorts on as Leah turned her head away from him to allow him a modicum of privacy. The entire pack had questioning looks on their faces, Jacob's the most prominent. Sam cleared his throat and said, "We are done here. Everyone has improved on what they needed to improve on. Let's pack up and go home."

His announcement was met with whoops and hollers of glee as a few of the pack ran off to do exactly what he had ordered. Leah trotted to her stuff, snagging her bag of clothes in her teeth and trotting off into the forest to phase and dress. She returned to her tent to begin packing, Sam's words lingering in her head the entire time.

In the middle of packing, a familiar voice said, "Hey Leah." She turned her head to peer up at Jacob who asked, "What happened?" He sat down next to her.

She quietly filled him in on the conversation that happened while she and Sam had been in wolf forms. Leah finished folding the corners of her small tent together, shoving it into the nylon bag that it had been purchased with. She followed that with the rain fly.

"So that's it?" Jake asked. "You have to learn patience?" At Leah's nod he snorted and said, "You are so screwed." He leapt to his feet.

Leah shot him a death glare that he smirked down at. "Jake you can shove it up your-"

"Ask me again if you ever need any help Leah!" Jacob interrupted, dodging away with a laugh when she tried to punch his leg, retreating towards his own tent.

"Don't be an asshole Jake!"

"Never! That title still belongs to General Asshole!" Jake pointed towards Sam's tent.

Leah smirked.

**-WPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWP-**

Kat's Notes: So I won't be posting B is for Ball back up since it's noncompliant for FFnet but I will try to post the ones that are not rated MA from Blackwater A-Z since some have resisted coming to JBNP. I really recommend it though. I have posted a fanfic there called Jacob Pops the P and it's not because he's saying "Yep" or "Nope!" Hahahaha.


	4. D is for Dad

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Beta and Pre-read by October Skies_

_D is for Dad_

Every Memorial Day Billy Black and his family traveled the exact distance of one block down the street to attend his good friend Harry Clearwater's celebratory fish fry. Harry's wife, Sue, would decorate her backyard in traditional Quileute ways mixed with red, white and blue, honoring the past history of the Quileute warriors along with the soldiers of the America of the present. There would be lots of food, games, friends, family and fun. Later in the evening, Billy would sit around a pit fire, re-telling the legends of the tribe's origins as he did every year. The only difference would be the number of bodies around the fire.

Rebecca and Rachel Black would be conspicuously absent from this year's festivities. The girls had moved out after graduating last year, Rebecca moving to Hawaii and Rachel going to college. Rachel didn't even come home for the summer, preferring to stay at college and earn more credit hours during the summer semester.

Jacob knew his father missed his sisters this year. As he wheeled Billy towards the Clearwater's, a pan of baked beans sat in the older man's lap and a box of beers was set down between the foot pedals, balancing precariously; Billy kept commenting on how the day wouldn't be the same without them.

"I know Rachel really regrets not being able to be here. She loves my stories."

_Keep telling yourself that old man._ Jacob snorted. Rachel had blown out of town like a hurricane through a beach when she got her scholarship to go to Seattle. She called once a week, talking for barely five minutes before something would happen to drag her away from the phone. Jacob sometimes thought Billy's entire week was about those five minutes, and it made him angry that his sister could be so thoughtless about keeping in touch with her family..

He never expressed that anger out loud because his Dad would lecture him for speaking out against his sisters' behavior. So he bit his tongue, instead choosing to reply, "Seth loves your stories too Dad. He'll be there to listen."

"True." Billy seemed tickled about that fact and Jacob didn't bring it up anymore. They reached the Clearwater house and he wheeled Billy around back, familiar with the yard's spots that were easier to navigate.

"Hey Billy! Jacob!" Sue greeted seeing them enter from the side. Sue was standing back supervising as Seth twirled streamers across the yard. Jacob could see she had already set out the wolf skin head dress that had been passed down in Harry's family. Wooden wolf masks and red and white balls made of crepe paper, hung side by side along the back porch eaves. Short spirit totems stood proudly around the fire pit, Seth currently stringing blue crepe between each pole.

"You guys are just in time," Harry called out from behind his tool shed. "We'll have the fish ready in a moment!" Jacob could pick up the faint sounds of bubbling oil and grease and the smell of breaded, fried fish permeated the air around them. Harry had an extension cord running from the house to his shed, his deep fryer hooked up outside. Sue absolutely forbade him from stinking up the house.

"Smells great Harry! We're hungry," Billy called back, speaking for both himself and Jake. "I got the beans here!"

"I'll take that," Sue removed the foil covered pan from Billy's lap heading into the house. "Jake did you make this?" she called over her shoulder after having peeked under the tin foil.

"Yeah," Jacob muttered, his cheeks reddening. The beans were a little blackened on top from overcooking. All he had to do was follow the recipe which had turned out fine but a phone call from Bella Swan had distracted him into forgetting his cooking. She had called to wish him a Happy Memorial Day which had literally made his day. She was so hot.

"Mom! Have you seen my flip flops?" Leah's voice carried from inside the house, just past the closed screen door. The inside door was propped open to let the late May breeze air out the house. Sue opened the screen door and asked, "Which ones?" Jacob didn't hear the rest of the conversation once the door shut and the two women eased down to inaudible levels.

Speaking of hot, so was Leah Clearwater. Jake could think back to the crush he'd had on her in grade school right up until she entered the higher education building in junior high. He looked at the door, hoping to see her but she never appeared. Not that he had a snowball chance in hell to date her. She was already taken.

"Hey Jake! Want to play some basketball?" Jake was immediately distracted by Seth's offer. "Sure." They headed back around the front of the house, a basket hitched to the side of the house above the garage door.

In the midst of one-on-one (Jake was pulling his baskets to keep things even with Seth), a tall, semi-undressed, solitary figure walked up towards them in the driveway. "Hey Sam!" Seth called out cheerfully, ignoring Jake who scored in his momentary negligence.

"Hi Seth."

"Jake," Sam nodded at him. Jake returned the gesture with a, "Sam," in the same gruff manner. Sam held Jacob's gaze, the younger boy shifting uncomfortably under the scrutiny of the other. Sam was the same age as his sisters and had recently been undergoing some changes. The whole tribe had noticed and Jacob was pretty sure his Dad knew something, but whatever it was, the old man wasn't talking.

There had been rumors of drugs and other illicit gossip passing around the entire Reservation. Jacob wasn't sure if he believed it, but lately Sam had taken to staring at him in a manner he wasn't comfortable with. It was like he was expecting something from Jacob but didn't ask out loud.

"You want to join us?" Seth offered, bouncing the basketball he had recovered after Jake's last basket. He held it out toward Sam.

"No, but thanks," Sam smiled at Seth. "Is your sister around? She invited me to the fish fry."

"Yeah she's inside," Seth gestured towards the door, without offering to lead Sam in. Sam, as Leah's long-time boyfriend, was pretty much part of the family so he came and went as he pleased. So did Jake and Billy. Most of the families who had members on the tribal council were close knit to the point of an open door policy when it came to their homes.

"See you out back," Sam gave a little wave before heading inside.

Jake turned to look at Seth and ask, "Where's his shirt?"

Seth snorted. "Tell me about it! I don't think he even owns any shirts anymore! He's always showing up here half naked and Dad just lets him parade around here like that!"

Jake snickered. As they resumed their game, the younger boy kept making complaints about his sister's boyfriend's state of dress (or lack thereof). Soon enough they heard Sue yell, "It's ready! Come eat or don't eat at all!"

"Mo-om!" That would be Leah who sounded embarrassed by her mom's frank words. Sue meant every bit of it. The Black and Clearwater men could tuck away several plates of food without stopping to burp. It was Sam's first time there and Jacob snickered as he learned to fill his plate quickly or lose a hand to all the forks flying between dishes.

They all sat down at the picnic table to eat. Jacob was filling Seth in on the mechanics of installing a car stereo. He had just recently replaced the busted radio in the VW Rabbit with a better CD system. Harry and Billy were talking excitedly about a White Sturgeon fishing trip they had planned with Charlie for the following weekend. Leah, Sam, and Sue were at the other end of the table chatting about future plans, Sue interrupting them occasionally to remind her husband not to eat so much in one sitting. Jacob noticed more than once during supper, Sam's gaze would land on Harry and Billy and he would fidget slightly, looking as if he wanted to say something to the tribal council members.

When everyone had helped themselves to a second (some of them a third) serving of food, Sam finally decided to speak when a lull broke in Billy and Harry's conversation. He cleared his throat gaining the attention of everyone at the table.

"Sir," Sam's eyes landed upon Harry Clearwater and his formal tone immediately notified everyone that something was up. "Ah, that is Harry," Sam sensed the alertness in the air and Jake could see he was perspiring lightly. Was Sam Uley nervous?

"What is it Sam?" Harry's gray, bushy eyebrows lifted with his question. Jacob wondered if Seth would inherit those same brows when he was older.

"Well with all this talk about futures," Sam ignored the plate of half eaten burger in front of him, leaning towards Harry, his arm on the table. "I'd like to speak to you about my future." He paused and then glanced at Harry's daughter, "With Leah."

Leah's face broke into a smile. Sue leaned back in her chair, a hint of a smile playing about her lips. Harry's face was stoic, giving nothing away at this admission. Billy Black was frowning severely and Jake felt that he could care less about Sam's future. It sounded like Sam was about to propose or something. If he did, the gossip would be widespread on the reservation by the next day.

In the continued silence Sam said, "I'd like to ask permission for your daughter's hand in marriage." By now, Leah was grinning, no doubt in anyone's mind what her answer would be if Sam was given permission to ask. "We'd wait for her to get out of high school of course, before getting married." Sam was quick to assure Harry.

Harry leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over the portly belly he had accumulated from many years of fish fries and junk food snuck past his ever watchful wife's eyes. He looked at Sam for a moment and said, "Well that's something to think about isn't it?"

At his words, Billy Black suddenly exploded, gesturing wildly with his hands. "No! This can't be Harry! Leah can't marry Sam. Have you forgotten?"

Jacob lifted his head from his bite of food. Why should his Dad care if Leah and Sam got married?

"Forgotten?" Harry rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he glanced at Billy who was now giving Harry a very expectant look. When Harry continued to look stumped by his question, Billy let out a snort of disgust.

"Nearly 11 years ago this very day," Billy's voice was cajoling, trying to coerce Harry into remembering something. "We were sitting on the back porch," he gestured up towards the set of rocking chairs up by the house. He said something in Quileute to Harry and Jacob recognized one word – drunk.

Harry's fingers left his chin, pointing up into the sky as he looked up into the clouds, searching his memory banks for whatever Billy was reminding him of. Eventually he agreed, "You're right Billy. I had forgotten." Turning his gaze to Sam, the patriarch of the Clearwater family said, "I'm sorry Sam. I cannot allow you to marry my daughter as she has been promised as Jacob's bride."

"WHAT?!" Leah's cry of disbelief matched the loud spew of baked beans that left Jacob's mouth as he choked. He had just taken a bite on the spoon, when the words left Harry's mouth, causing him to inhale sharply, beans going down the wrong tube in the process. Jacob began coughing violently.

"Jake!" Seth hopped up next to him, pounding his back with equal force in an attempt to help. Jake tried to wave him off.

"Dad, what the hell?!" Leah jumped to her feet, staring at her dad like a crazy person.

"Leah language!" Sue admonished her daughter before turning her dark, steely gaze to her husband and asking, "Harry what the hell is going on?" The same language rules apparently didn't apply to herself.

Sam was frowning thunderously in Jacob and Billy's direction, his frame shaking. "Sam!" Billy called sharply to the teenage boy. He threw himself back away from the picnic table, his chair rolling across the lawn from the force of his push. Sam took off running towards the side of the house.

"Sam!" Leah chased after him but it was like a bicycle chasing a freight train. He was gone within seconds. "Sam! Where are you going?"

Jake finally got his breath back, taking a long draw on his soda to help. Seth was still beating his back and so he croaked out, "Seth I'm good!"

Harry and Billy were staring at each other. "I am sorry I had forgotten Billy," Harry apologized.

"Forgot what?" Sue's voice was loud and clearly annoyed as she stood up, planting her hands on her hips. "Harry Clearwater what have you done?"

"What's going on?" Seth asked, clearly as confused as his mother.

"Dad?" Jacob was looking at Billy for an explanation, coughing lightly into his fisted hand as he continued to recover from his choking.

"He's gone!" Leah came around the side of the house, her dark eyes snapping with fury. "Sam's disappeared again!" She marched towards the picnic table and yelled, "Are you happy? You never liked Sam did you Dad? And now he's gone!"

"Leah calm down," Sue reached for her daughter but Leah just shrugged her off. "Your dad has an explanation for this." Sue's hazel brown eyes pierced her husband's face as she asked, "Right?"

Harry cleared his throat, his eyes never leaving Sue's as he said, "Yes. A few years ago-"

"Ten or eleven this very day," Billy interjected.

"Right," Harry cleared his throat again, "This was back when Sarah was still alive. You and she were in the kitchen getting the cakes ready-"

"Sarah's carrot cake was the best," Billy leaned back in his chair, tilting his head up towards the skies, a tiny smile gracing his lips. "I miss them."

"Me too," Harry agreed. He let out a wistful sigh and then shook his head. "So Billy and I were on the back porch, just having a few beers-"

"It was the Shneider Weiss?" Billy interrupted Harry to ask that question.

Harry shook his head, "You brought over Flensburger. You told me you kept the Schneider at home that night."

"Oh yeah," Billy nodded his head.

"Billy was telling me about Schneider. He'd given me a bottle before and it's really good beer. His old buddy stationed in Germany had shipped him a few cases." Harry continued nonchalantly, chatting as if this was not a life altering event that he was speaking of.

"The German do know how to brew," Billy praised and Harry nodded at him. The eldest Clearwater looked back to his wife and daughter who wore identical frowns on their faces.

Jacob glanced at Leah who was clearly as unimpressed as he was by their fathers' joint rumination of this story.

Harry spoke again. "I told Billy I wanted to get my hands on a case of that Schneider myself and he asked me what I could offer him and that it had better be good." Harry's eyes landed on Jacob and then back to Leah. "Just about that time Leah ran past followed by Jacob and Seth. What was he four?" Harry looked to Billy.

"Yep," Billy nodded. "Jake was holding something and chasing Leah. Seth was still in diapers and followed Jake like a puppy dog."

"He still does," Harry and Billy both laughed while their sons glowered at them.

"He was chasing me with worms." Leah scowled at Jacob, remembering she had found Seth and Jacob digging in the muddy garden patch that belonged to her mother. When she had threatened to tattle-tale on the two of them he had threatened to drop worms down her dress and chased her around the yard.

Jacob shrugged his shoulders at Leah. "I was four," he said in his own defense.

Billy and Harry seemed to find that funny and Harry said, "First I offered Billy some money but he said the beer was worth more than that. The kids ran past us again. Leah honey, you were chasing Jacob at that point, yelling at him that you were going to make him eat something.."

"The worms," Jacob vaguely recalled the memory. He had ended up dumping them down her dress and when they finally fell out she had surprised him by picking them back up and then yelling she was going to make him eat those worms.

"So that's what Seth was trying to tell us," Billy started chuckling. "He ran by a minute after you two did, chasing you guys and all we heard was "Warmf."

Sue's mouth was quirking up and down at the story. Seth was grinning at hearing past stories that he couldn't remember. Harry and Billy were laughing together in shared memory.

"So get to the point where you two signed a betrothal contract," Leah crossed her arms, glaring at the two old coots at the picnic bench.

"Well I had a few beers by that point," Harry explained, "And Billy told me to make him a good offer on that case of beer, so _I made him an offer he couldn't refuse._" Billy laughed at the strained Marlon Brando impression Harry had effected.

Leah's arms uncrossed, her hands going to her hips as she stomped her foot. "Dad! You traded me for a case of beer?!"

"Leah, it was really good beer!"

She stared at him appalled. Jake stared at his Dad. Had he really accepted that offer?

"Dad, did you really accept that offer?" Jake ventured his thoughts out loud.

"Yep," Billy nodded his head looking between Leah and Jake. "You two used to play together ever since you were in diapers Jake. When you were three years old you told me you were going to run away to live with Leah because she had all the cool toys."

Jake blushed. "Dad, how could you believe me? I was three!"

"Age is not a defense Jake."

Jake rolled his eyes. "You better be joking old man."

"I want to know why this is the first I am hearing of this." Sue was looking directly at Harry as she spoke. Her voice was quiet and Harry felt himself pale at her tone. Quiet and Sue were not a good combination. "How could you make this kind of arrangement without discussing this with me Harry Clearwater?"

"Discuss it?" Leah's fury was loud and she shouted, "What is this the eighteenth century?! You can't just give me away like that without my consent! I wouldn't marry Jacob Black if you paid me! There is no betrothal!"

"Oh yes there is, I gave Harry my case of Schneider."

"Shut up Dad!" Jake pushed himself away from the table with less force than Sam, but just as much anger. "I can't believe you two would do something like this!" He was upset by this revelation from both men, but he was equally stung by Leah's immediate rejection and insult. It's not like he wanted her that way either; he preferred a paler girl with soft brown hair, and chocolate eyes, but she was acting disgusted by him and Jake knew he was anything but disgusting.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time," Harry said, his voice quiet with defeat. He was going to be sleeping on the couch tonight for sure.

"Dad you better undo this," Leah let out a snort of derision. "I gotta go find Sam and explain this stupid thing." She whirled around, running towards the front of the house.

"She won't find him right now," Billy said cryptically. Once again, Jake had the feeling his Dad knew something that the rest of them didn't about Sam Uley.

"I don't like that boy around my daughter," Harry grumbled. "He's too much like his father. I'd rather have a son-in-law like-" Harry's words cut off but Jacob caught the glance the eldest Clearwater threw his way.

Jacob shook his head. "No way!" He looked down at Billy and said, "Have Seth take you home. I can't even look at you right now."

"I'm not breaking this betrothal Jake!" Billy called out to his son as he ran off, following the same trail as Leah and Sam had gone.

Seth, who had remained silent during the fuss, looked at his mother asking, "Am I going to be Jake's brother–in-law or not?"

"No," Sue said at the same time both Dads declared "YES!"

**-WPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWPWP WP-**  
><strong>Kat's Note: This story was inspired by the time I was 18 years old and my own father in the middle of a crowded Mexican restaurant tells me he once betrothed me to our landlord's son for a case of German beer. Just like Harry – his only response to my laughing outrage that this could happen was "It was really good beer". So yeah apparently I have a fiancé somewhere out there in the world. Anyone want to help me track him down?<strong>


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